Windows: Safe Mode – Start from Boot|Reboot & CMD

Safe Mode in Windows is a special diagnostic mode that allows to use Windows with basic drivers and can help to troubleshoot various problems.

Windows can be started in Safe Mode in different ways, depending on the OS version (Windows 10, 8, 7, XP) and the hardware vendor (Lenovo, DELL, HP, Asus, Acer).

In this note i am showing how to boot Windows 10, 8, 7, XP in Safe Mode from startup (cold boot) and how to restart it and boot it in Safe Mode from a login screen or directly from Windows.

I am also showing how to configure Windows to boot in Safe Mode from the command-line interface (CMD).

Cool Tip: Kill a hanging process in Windows from the CMD! Read more →

Start Windows 10, 8, 7, XP in Safe Mode from Boot

To start Windows 10, 8, 7, XP in Safe Mode from boot, repeatedly press F8 key or one of the key combinations Ctrl + F8 or Shift + F8 or Fn + F8 during the system startup, but before the Windows logo appears (try all these combinations because for different vendors e.g. Lenovo, DELL, HP, Asus, Acer, etc. the key combination for booting in Safe Mode may be different).

Fast Boot: Because of the current fast computers and laptops with fast boot or SSD, it is sometimes complex to catch the exact time frame for pressing the required key combinations during the boot process and it might take several attempts to access the Boot Manager this way.

Restart Windows 10, 8 in Safe Mode

To restart Windows 10, 8 in Safe Mode from login screen or directly from Windows GUI:

1. Click the Windows Power button, hold down the Shift key and click on Restart
2. Select Troubleshoot -> Advanced options -> Startup Settings -> Restart . Here you may be asked to enter your BitLocker recovery key.
3. The relevant options for booting in Safe Mode are the numbers 4 , 5 or 6
   • Press the keys 4 or F4 to boot in Safe Mode
   • Press the keys 5 or F5 to boot in Safe Mode with Networking
   • Press the keys 6 or F6 to boot in Safe Mode with Command Prompt

Start Windows 10, 8, 7 in Safe Mode from CMD

It requires administrative privileges to modify boot configuration, so firstly it needs to start CMD as administrator.

Press the Win key to open the Start menu, type in cmd to search for the command prompt and press Ctrl + Shift + Enter to launch it as administrator.

Configure Windows to boot in Safe Mode:

Configure Windows to boot in Safe Mode with Networking:

Configure Windows to boot in Safe Mode with Command Prompt:

Restart Windows and it will be started in Safe Mode:

When you don’t need to boot in Safe Mode anymore, change it back to normal:

Start your PC in safe mode in Windows 10

Safe mode starts Windows in a basic state, using a limited set of files and drivers. If a problem doesn’t happen in safe mode, this means that default settings and basic device drivers aren’t causing the issue. Observing Windows in safe mode enables you to narrow down the source of a problem, and can help you troubleshoot problems on your PC.

There are two versions of safe mode: Safe Mode and Safe Mode with Networking. Safe Mode with Networking adds the network drivers and services you’ll need to access the Internet and other computers on your network.

Select from the following sections to find out how to start your PC in safe mode from Settings, from the sign-in screen, or from a black or blank screen.

Press Windows logo key + I on your keyboard to open Settings. If that doesn’t work, select the Start button, then select Settings .

Under Advanced startup, select Restart now.

After your PC restarts to the Choose an option screen, select Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Startup Settings > Restart. You may be asked to enter your BitLocker recovery key.

After your PC restarts, you’ll see a list of options. Select 4 or press F4 to start your PC in Safe Mode. Or if you’ll need to use the Internet, select 5 or press F5 for Safe Mode with Networking.

When you can’t open Settings to get into safe mode, restart your device from the Windows sign-in screen.

On the Windows sign-in screen, press and hold the Shift key while you select the Power > Restart .

After your PC restarts to the Choose an option screen, select Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Startup Settings > Restart. You may be asked to enter your BitLocker recovery key.

After your PC restarts, you’ll see a list of options. Select 4 or F4 to start your PC in safe mode. Or if you’ll need to use the Internet, select 5 or F5 for Safe Mode with Networking.

Note: If you’ve encrypted your device, you’ll need your BitLocker key to start in safe mode.

Before you enter safe mode, you need to enter the Windows Recovery Environment (winRE). To do this, you will repeatedly turn your device off, then on:

Hold down the power button for 10 seconds to turn off your device.

Press the power button again to turn on your device.

On the first sign that Windows has started (for example, some devices show the manufacturer’s logo when restarting) hold down the power button for 10 seconds to turn off your device.

Press the power button again to turn on your device.

When Windows restarts, hold down the power button for 10 seconds to turn off your device.

Press the power button again to turn on your device.

Allow your device to fully restart. You will enter winRE.

Now that you are in winRE, you will follow these steps to take you to safe mode:

On the Choose an option screen, select Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Startup Settings > Restart.

After your device restarts, you’ll see a list of options. Select option 5 from the list or press F5 for Safe Mode with Networking.

If you need more info on a black or blank screen error, see Troubleshoot black or blank screen errors.

Notes: If you need to exit safe mode, simply restart your device, or:

Press the Windows logo key + R.

Type msconfig in the Open box and then select OK.

Select the Boot tab.

Under Boot options, clear the Safe boot checkbox.

How to directly reboot in Safe Mode in Windows 10

The Safe mode in Windows, start the computer with a limited set of drivers and system files. Startup programs, add-ons, etc. first, do not run in Safe Mode, and only the basic drivers needed to start Windows 10/8/7 are started. This mode is quite useful for troubleshooting Windows problems.

If you want to restart and boot directly into Safe Mode, you have to watch the computer reboot, watch the various BIOS messages, select which operating system you want to boot with, and then press F8 at the exact moment to enable the Advanced Boot menu. In Windows 10/8, of course, things are a bit different. You have to first enable F8 key if you want to use it to boot in Safe Mode.

Reboot in Safe Mode

But you wish you can directly reboot into Safe Mode. To do this, open Run box, type msconfig and hit Enter to open the System Configuration utility.

Select the Boot tab, and under Boot Options, check Safe Mode. The Minimal option will get selected automatically. If you need other Safe Mode options like Networking, etc.on, you can select those.

Click on Apply > OK. You will now see a prompt. Click on the Restart button, and the computer will initiate the process to reboot your computer directly in safe mode. So before you click the Restart button, make sure that you have saved all your work.

Do note that, if you reboot again from Safe Mode, you will again reboot back into Safe Mode. So once you have completed your work in Safe Mode, again run msconfig and uncheck the Safe Boot option, Click Apply, and then restart your computer. This will bring you back to your desktop, after the restart.

Shortcut to reboot in Safe Mode

If you need to reboot in Safe Mode frequently, you can create its shortcut. Right-click on your desktop, select New > Shortcut. In the Location field, copy-paste the following path:

Click next and name the shortcut as, say, Restart Options.

BootSafe

Alternatively, you can download and use a simple .exe utility called BootSafe.

However, when you want to leave Safe Mode and return to Normal mode, you need to use this program again to get a reboot into Normal mode.

How to Boot Safe Mode Windows 10, 8, 7 (7 ways)

What is Safe Mode and how to boot Safe mode Windows.

💡 For Windows 10, 8, 7; for laptop and computer.

Contents

Safe Mode and Options

is a diagnostic mode of a computer operating system. Safe mode is intended to help fix most, if not all problems within an operating system.

Booting in Safe Mode Windows is often used to remove viruses and programs that cannot be removed during normal mode of the Operating System (OS).

Safe Mode Windows 10

In this mode, the minimum set of system programs and services necessary to start the system is loaded.

Starting non-system services from startup and not system programs is ignored.

🔔 The ability to work in this mode is limited.

There are three modes for starting Windows Safe Mode:

Safe Mode	The minimum set of system services is loaded, the launch of not system programs and services is disabled.
Safe mode with Networking	The minimum set of system services and network services is loaded, the launch of not system programs and services is disabled.
Safe mode with Command Promt	The minimum set of system services + network services is loaded, the launch of not system programs and services is disabled. The command line starts, before starting Windows Explorer.

Three modes of Safe Mode Windows 10

The mode is designed to diagnose startup, fix problems and errors OS .

Safe mode after reboot (Windows 10, 8)

An easy way to reboot Windows in safe mode.

💡 Suitable for Windows 10, 8.

1. Press the START button;
2. Click the Power button;
3. Press and hold the SHIFT button and then click Restart. The advanced Windows boot menu is loading;
4. Select the Troubleshoot;

Choose an options

5. In the Troubleshoot window, select the Advanced options;

Troubleshoot

6. In the Advanced options window, select the Startup Settings;

Advanced options

7. In the Startup Setting window, click the Restart button;

Startup Settings

8. After restarting your computer, In the Boot Options window (Advanced Boot Options), select the required Windows boot mode.

Advanced Boot Options for Windows 10

Windows will boot in Safe mode.

To exit Safe Mode, restart your computer.

Using msconfig (Windows 10, 8, 7)

We use the msconfig utility to boot Windows in safe mode.

💡 Suitable for Windows 10, 8, 7.

1. Right-click on the START button and select Run or press the key combination Windows+R;
2. Enter the name of the msconfig utility and click OK;
3. Switch to the Boot tab, check the Safe Mode checkbox, select Minimal and press ОК;
4. Click Restart to start Windows Safe Mode.

Select computer restart options

To exit Safe mode, restart your computer.

🔔 The msconfig utility provides additional options for starting the computer (disabling the launch of services and applications).

Enable Advanced boot options (Windows 10, 8)

💡 Suitable for Windows 10, 8.

In Windows 10, 8, the call to this menu with the F8 button must be turned on manually.

1. Run the command prompt as administrator;
2. Enter the command:

bcdedit command

Close the command prompt window, restart the computer.

Before loading the operating system, press the F8 button, the Advanced boot options menu opens, where we can choose several options for starting Safe Mode or other Windows boot options.

🔔 If you have a laptop, you may have to press the Fn + F8 key combination.

Advanced Boot Options for Windows 10

Safe Mode from System Restore (Windows 10, 8)

💡 Suitable for Windows 10, 8.

You can boot Safe Mode Windows 10, 8 from Recovery mode, after an incorrect OS boot.

After three consecutive power outages when loading Windows 10, 8, the system will start to boot Recovery mode.

Recovery mode Windows 10, 8

Select See advanced repair options recovery options.

Further, the launch of Safe Mode will occur as in paragraph – Safe Mode after reboot (Windows 10, 8).

🔔 We dont recommend using this method of loading Windows Safe Mode, as this can cause permanent damage to the system!

Safe mode from the command prompt (bcdedit)

The bcdedit command changes persistent Windows boot options. After enabling Safe Mode, enter the command to change the configuration and disable booting into Safe Mode.

You can also use the bcdedit command in the command prompt in Windows Recovery mode.

You can boot Windows in Safe Mode by running the bcdedit command in the Command Prompt running with administrator rights.

Enable Safe Mode:

Enable Safe Mode with Networking:

Enable Safe Mode with Command Prompt (enter two commands):

Restart your computer to apply the new configuration settings.

To disable booting Safe Mode, in Windows configuration, run:

Safe mode using shutdown utility

The shutdown utility is a built-in Windows program that allows you to restart, shutdown, hibernate, or end a user session.

After rebooting, in the System Restore window, select the required option.

Learn more about the startup parameters of the shutdown utility – here.

I hope you were able to boot Windows in Safe Mode in a convenient way.

How to boot Windows Safe Mode:

SHIFT button and Reboot

Hold the SHIFT button and press Reset button. More…

Run the msconfig utility, select the Safe Mode – Minimal option. More…

Enabling the Advanced Boot Menu

Use the bcdedit command to enable the Advanced boot menu and the press F8 button (as on Windows 7, XP) to call up the menu, when the Windows boot. More…

Three times, power off the system to enable the Recovery mode and boot Windows Safe Mode. More…

These were the available options for boot Safe Mode Windows 10, 8, 7.

🟢 How to boot Safe Mode in Windows 10, 8, 7 was discussed in this article. I hope you can now configure Windows to start in Safe Mode. However, if you run into any problems, do not hesitate to write in the comments. I will try to help.